Miraculous X: Red, Black, and Blue
by DocMcDuck
Summary: In pursuit of a reality-warping Maverick, X finds himself trapped in a world where magical heroes and villains fight for the ultimate power. X's past rears its head, and he finds that no matter where he is in the multiverse, there's always something to fight for. With so much on the line, can our heroes overcome their barriers and save both worlds? (Spoilers for Miraculous Season2)
1. Robostus and Warp Wasp

MMXMLC

Miraculous X: Red, Black, and Blue

_**A/N: Before you read this, I recommend that you be familiar with the series "Mega Man X" and "Miraculous: tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir". However, the characters will explain the elements of their own stories to each other, (sooner or later) so it's not required.**_

_**As there isn't much material to go off of in game, I'm taking a few creative liberties. Most obvious are X's personality and hobbies outside of maverick hunting. More creative liberties include the way various tech stuff actually works. I'm ignoring a lot of media, and building off of the parts I know best.**_

_**There are spoilers for Miraculous here, so be warned. I haven't changed much there, since it has more than enough story to go off of. However, X's presence may alter the course of events. I'd like to thank the wiki for providing episode scripts for unchanged dialogue. Most things that go more-or-less unchanged in the Miraculous episodes will be skipped to avoid redundancy.**_

_**I have no idea why people do disclaimers. I think it would be pretty obvious that those writing here have no ownership of the properties. Was there a lawsuit at some point? Anyways, I'm only doing **__**one**__** disclaimer here at the beginning, so here: I do NOT own "Mega Man X" or "Miraculous: tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir." So, without further ado, here's the story.**_

Chapter 1: Warp Wasp/Robostus.

With a splash of blue liquid-like energy, Mega Man X materialized just outside Abel City's quantum-research facility.

Looking to be about 15 or 16, his entire body was covered in sectioned blue armor. His helmet, chest, boots, and waist had bulkier dark blue armor while the rest was a sleeker light-blue. A lighter stripe went over the top of his helmet ending in a shining red crystal at his forehead, and light blue arches framed his face before coming to a point between his eyebrows. Appearing to be a human in armor, X was actually an advanced robot capable of emotions and complex decision-making.

Raising a white-gloved hand to his earpiece, he established a comm link with his home base. "This is X, I've arrived at the scene. Any description of the target?"

A female voice replied from the other side of the connection. Her voice was a bit shaky, which made sense as it was her first time on duty. "_Ok, let's do it. This one's an Insect-class, Maverick designation Warp-Wasp. He once worked at this facility before he was infected. He was designed with one-of-a-kind experimental technology that allows him to twist the fabric of space. In combination with his quick flight and wrist-mounted stinger-launchers, they give him a considerable advantage over most hunters._"

X nodded as he approached the entrance, a light click sounding with each footstep. "Thank you, moving in now."

" _Good luck, sir._"

Not wanting to give the virus the opportunity to spread over wireless connection, he turned off his comms before engaging his combat protocol. His spatial awareness and processing speed immediately improved far beyond any human capabilities, and his processor began focusing on velocity, trajectory, and possible surfaces to jump off instead of things like the interesting architecture or the funny-looking aesthetic of the robots. Plates on his arm raised and rearranged, replacing his right hand with the business end of an arm-cannon. As his plasma-generator hummed to life, he activated his acceleration-systems and dashed inside.

As usual, the Maverick virus had taken over all the robots in the facility. Everything with a processor capable of housing it had gone haywire, and would attack anything not infected. Also as usual, not infected included X. As soon as he stepped inside, a whole host of mindless drones were alerted to his presence and began converging on his position.

Charging up and discharging blast after blast of plasma, he eliminated everything he came across. Early in his career he would have hesitated at something like this, but after years of trying to cure the virus to no avail, he had mostly given up. It was all he could do to take down the afflicted bots before substantial damage was done.

As he dashed and wall-jumped his way through the facility, he steeled himself for what he was about to do. These lesser robots were nothing; it was the Reploids, the ones that could think and reason and _feel_ that it really ate him up to kill. Knowing that they were once more complex than 'Yes, lord Sigma' and 'Die, hunter!' made him regret every plasma-shot he sent their way. But such was the way of things; he was responsible for their creation, so it was his responsibility to take them down.

Soon enough, he came through some blast-doors into a central chamber. The Virus always behaved like this; place the strongest of the infected in the center of the area and put all of the lesser machines around the edges. It was even so predictable as to build blast-doors into every central chamber that didn't already have them.

But back to the chamber itself. Buzzing around some machinery that clung to the ceiling like moss was a sleek black and yellow Reploid, with wings that beat so fast that they seemed not to be there. Above their black-gloved hands and protruding from their wrist were long white spikes, ready to be fired off and replaced at a moment's notice. As soon as he noticed X, his eyes gleamed with delight as the blast-doors slammed shut. A maniacal cackle resounded through the room as Warp-Wasp powered up his own combat protocols. "Die, Hunter!"

Taking an immediate dive at X, he extended his stingers forward in an attempt to reduce his opponent into a bot-kebab. Seeing this and immediately reacting, X leapt backwards and out of the way before discharging a plasma-blast at the Maverick.

Warp-wasp didn't quite have the speed necessary to dodge a fully-charged laser blast, but he did have the means to retaliate. As his self-repair systems converted ENRG into replacement metal, he twisted the space around himself to teleport all over the chamber, firing off a series of stinger-blades at X from multiple directions. X managed to dodge a few, but gritted his teeth when a few of them tore through his armor. He felt his ENRG reserves deplete as the damage was repaired, wincing at the negative pain-feedback he got from his sub-processor. He had a huge ENRG reserve, and he had a few sub-tanks stocked up, but he had no idea how much Warp-Wasp had in him. One more 'as usual'; it was a battle of who could make the most of their reserves.

Meanwhile

Somewhere in Paris, an aperture opened on an unidentifiable building, shedding light on a mysterious silver-masked individual as well as countless pure white butterflies. Extremely well-dressed, this person held a cane in his hands and looked off into the sunlight.

"Two dear friends who've been separated. There is nothing artificial about those emotions."

As he spoke, one of the butterflies drifted into his hands. Dark energy coalesced into and around the creature, transforming it into a darkened state. Only slivers of the light that once shone from it could be seen through the murky purple, and the grace with which it once flew with was replaced by a sick flutter. With a flourish, the mysterious figure released the thing and issued his command.

"Fly away, my little Akuma, and evilize this electronic heart!"

Now with direction in its life, the Akuma flitted off into the Paris sky with an uncanny speed and sense of direction. In contrast to the darkness of the Akuma, the Eiffel tower shone in the sunlight, and the rooftops of the city just begged to have heroes grapple-hooking and pole-vaulting across them.

Seeming to get more frantic the closer it got to its target, the Akuma came upon an open window in a good-sized building. The room had a desk, a lamp, a computer, and tons of books, but the Akuma ignored most everything and headed towards a drawer in the desk. Defying butterfly logic, it pressed itself flat to get into the space.

What it happened to come upon was a very small spherical object, small enough to fit in one's hand like a baseball. It had a blue oval-shaped screen with two expressive eyes, currently wearing a sad expression. Two blue buttons sat embedded on its sides, and the backside had clear plastic to show the inner circuitry. Not pausing for a second, the Akuma squeezed in between the clear plastic and phased into its central processor.

All was mostly quiet in the quaint office, but inside the drawer a conversation was about to change the fate of two worlds.

Suddenly, emanating from the central processing unit, the same dark energy from the Akuma enveloped the little robot before revealing the same robot, but with a different color scheme. Blue was replaced with red, and white was replaced with black. With his green eyes narrowed in fury, he activated his ultimate ability; a green wave of energy erupted from his small frame, sweeping all across Paris.

Simultaneously, all machinery, appliances, and electrical equipment began to vibrate with new life. Bursting from the drawer of the desk, Robostus spun up his propeller and turned to face the door. "Max, my friend, I'm coming to get you!"

Back in Abel City

X panted heavily; this maverick was giving him a run for his money. His systems had taken heavy damage and he had been exerting himself, so his ventilation system was working overtime. On the other hand, his adversary was showing similar signs of wear and tear. X would use a sub-tank as soon as he was sure he needed it, but for now he was confident he could win under the current circumstances.

Warp-Wasp twisted space once again, teleporting rapidly to different corners of the room. Each time he reappeared, he fired a stinger. However, one of the warps just so happened to synchronize perfectly with another distant cosmic event. From within one of the quantum warps, bits of green energy washed over Warp-Wasp. The Maverick's eyes went wide as the virus was overridden by something supernatural. Suddenly making a gradual descent to the ground, Warp-Wasp turned around and created a twisting rift in space-time. "ROBUSTUS BECKONS, AND I MUST ANSWER!", he said in a screech.

Perplexed, X hesitated and stopped in his tracks. Mavericks never behaved like this; fights could never be interrupted. This contradicted every pattern that X had determined. If the virus had evolved in some way, he had to investigate immediately. Instead of destroying the Maverick, he would observe and intervene when necessary.

X didn't have to wait long. Warp-Wasp began drifting slowly towards the rift he created, like a moth to a flame. Not wasting any time, X dashed forward and gripped onto the Maverick's leg just before the portal closed behind them, leaving behind a hasty data-beacon for when the other hunters came to investigate his disappearance.

Unidentifiable colors and geometric impossibilities flew past his optics as the two reploids tumbled through the quantum tunnel, and X found that he couldn't register any of it. Everything here existed several dimensions above him, and his processor wasn't complex enough to make sense of it. Warp-Wasp was the only thing he could register at the moment, so that was what he paid attention to. The Maverick seemed not to be phased by the insanity that swirled around them, but maybe it was conditioned to not pay attention to any of it.

As quick as it started it was over, and they were both flung out into an unfamiliar sky. Now noticing the hunter latched onto his leg, Warp-Wasp started jerking around in an attempt to shake him off. With a swipe of a stinger, he struck X's fingers and dislodged his grip. Leaving him to tumble into oblivion, the Maverick made a beeline to get to its destination.

Gritting his teeth, X revved his internal gyroscopes to right himself and scanned the area below for a place to safely land. Below him was a sprawling city with many interesting things going on, but his combat protocols kept him focused on the task at hand. Pinpointing a clear intersection in the roads, he charged up a buster-shot and used the recoil to angle his trajectory towards it. As the ground rushed up at him, he braced his systems for a more intense impact than usual. A boom resounded across the vicinity, and the pavement curled up into a crater. His shock absorption took care of most of the damage, but not all, leaving the rest to fully deplete his main ENRG. Not waiting a second, he activated one of his four sub-tanks to refill it to the max.

Not one to forget what he was doing, X aimed his gaze upwards to try to catch a glimpse of Warp-Wasp but to no avail. In the time it took to safely land, the Maverick had escaped.

X disengaged his combat protocols with a sigh, now taking notice of the details around him. His new location was drastically different from the Abel City he was used to, the most substantial change was the technology level. Everything was simply less advanced. There were no street-cleaning robots taking care of trash, there were no holo-screens, and the buildings-

X had to take a second to gasp. That architecture; X had never seen anything like it. The skyscrapers and transit systems in Abel City were certainly impressive, but compared to these buildings, they were boring and sterile. The twists, turns, the exquisite stonework; this was practically architecture heaven.

As he looked around to take in his surroundings, his optics locked onto an interruption in the horizon. A truly massive structure stretched to the heavens, seeming to pierce and scrape the very sky itself. Now, X had seen his fair share of skyscrapers, even climbing some that were taller than what he was looking at, but they were all peers to the surrounding structures. This… this _thing_ had such a contrast to the other buildings that it had a unique majesty, the likes of which he had never seen.

He had to go see it up close.

A rev of an engine interrupted him from his musings, beckoning him to investigate. After dashing down the road, he came across a strange sight. A group of cars seemed to be _herding_ some humans. Primitive helicopters buzzed overhead as various appliances bobbed and weaved down the sidewalks.

His first thought was that the various objects had been taken over by the maverick virus, but there were errors in that logic. For one, it didn't behave like this. If those cars were Maverick, then they would be running those poor people right over. Secondly, this place seemed to be too primitive for anything to be able to house the virus. Along with that, the hovering nature of the appliances was uncharacteristic of technology of that type. This train of thought having taken split seconds, it led him to realize that whatever was possessing these had immense power, and was what had overridden Warp-Wasp's processor.

Ignoring the possible ramifications of this, he decided to focus on the present issue; those humans needed help.

After re-engaging his combat protocols, he dashed forward and hit one of the car-tires with a low-powered buster shot. Making a wide circle around the vehicles, he made quick work of the primitive wheels and rendered them all immobile. Once he was finished with that, he leapt up onto one of the cars and pointed to a deserted building.

"Get to safety! I'll cover you!"

The people were startled and a bit confused, but seemed to understand that he was there to help. They made a quick hustle to the building he pointed to, and any appliances that flew their way got blasted by X with minimal-power blasts. The machines were not made for this kind of action, so X didn't need to charge up his buster at all.

He repeated the process with any convoys he saw, ending the almost-lives of the animated objects and freeing the captive people. He decided to continue like this until he got to the source of it all. It was the same thing he always did, so logically it should work here.

Elsewhere in Paris

A massive robotic entity stomped through the streets of Paris, looking uncannily similar to combiners of the transformers series. Various construction vehicles formed a torso, legs, and arms while a small van functioned as its head. Inside this van was Robostus, and a kid with a green shirt and glasses who occupied the passenger's seat. The human kept nervously glancing towards the evilised robot, who was oblivious to the fact that his friend's nervousness was a result of his own actions.

"Don't worry Max, no one will ever be able to separate us again. We just need to take care of Ladybug and Cat Noir and get those jewels, that's all!"

Max was about to reply, but something caught his eye. An irregular shape was streaking across the sky, getting closer by the second. In no time flat, it landed on the mech's shoulder with a loud clang. As its wings buzzed to a stop, it bowed down on one knee, putting one hand on his chest and stretching the other to the floor. When it spoke, it did so in a screechy voice. "All Hail Lord Robostus!"

At this, Robostus narrowed his expression screen display. He wasn't aware of any entities like this existing in Paris, but it didn't matter. They were obviously here to assist him in his objective. "What is your name, friend?"

The strange new player stood and saluted, wings fluttering to assist in exaggerating the motion. "The name is Warp Wasp, Lord Robustus! I live to serve!"

Hawk Moth, who saw this through Robostus's eyes, was perplexed. They were _not_ an Akuma victim; of all people, Hawk Moth would know this. Had someone found the Bee Miraculous? No, something wasn't right. The comb was nowhere in sight; and whoever this was, they were not a Miraculous user. This was something new, something unusual. He would have to keep a close eye on this _thing_.

If Robostus had a mouth, he would be grinning fiercely. "Pleasure to meet you, Warp Wasp. Patrol the skies, and bring me Ladybug and Cat Noir!"

Now with an objective, Warp Wasp pumped his fist in front of him, signaling that he was ready. "Yes, Lord Robostus!" And with that, he cackled off into the sky in a way which no normal aircraft was capable.

Elsewhere

X was getting nowhere. This crisis had taken over a whole city, and there was no obvious spike in difficulty as he progressed. That meant there was no definitive center. Looking for the source of this chaos would be like finding the Hadouken upgrade.

It was only when he came across a huge open area that he realized he had been subconsciously approaching that massive pointy structure. And _devil_ was that thing huge. Without missing a beat, he switched off his combat protocol with a smile and made his way to one of the four legs of the pointy tower.

…A few seconds later…

To justify the fact that he was now scaling it, he had told himself it would make a great vantage point. Maybe there was some sort of huge thing he had missed that he could only see from a great height. But _wow_, this design was astoundingly brilliant. Not only was it tall, but there was also style and panache. The way the supports all lent themselves to one cohesive spire of tallness made it very pleasurable to look at.

Sadly, X's enjoyment of his climb only lasted so long. Once he got about a third of the way up, an annoying number of helicopters abruptly noticed him, beginning to swarm all over his location.

He scowled before engaging combat mode and pushing off of the wall with all his might, launching himself at one of the nearby choppers. He didn't shoot it down on account of the trapped pilots, but merely grabbed onto one of the landing supports and pulled himself through the open door. Inside, a pair of humans were cowering in the pilot and co-pilot seats, with seatbelts strapping them and their arms in place.

X had to shout over the helicopter blades, so he wasn't sure whether they heard him. "Don't worry, I'm here to help!" X moved to help them and readied his arm cannon, pointing it at the buckle. But, considering the weak material and the safety of the humans, he transformed it back into his hand and broke the primitive buckles with sheer force.

"Sit tight, I'm getting you out of here." He knew they probably couldn't hear him over the whirling blades, but he said it anyway. When dealing with civilians, it's best to speak more to seem welcoming, whether they can hear you or not.

They released exclamations of surprise as X shot out the windshield with his buster, and then went on to yell out in fear as he looped his arms under their shoulders. With a thrust of his accelerators, X dash-jumped out the front of the helicopter to an outcropping of the tower. After landing and setting them down, he turned to face the helicopter again. Now that the humans were safe, he was free to disable the propellers. He took aim and fired, pegging the rear propeller and watching as the aerial vehicle spiraled and crashed.

X furrowed his brows in concern. "Hm, primitive." Something that had been bothering him finally caught up with his train of thought. He was trapped here, and his technology was far beyond what this world was capable of. If this place's vehicles didn't have instantaneous self-repair, than it meant that he was unsustainable. As long as there was electricity he could keep his power core charged, but he needed ENRG to repair himself. He may have a large reserve, but it would only last so long.

But there was hope. Whatever was controlling these vehicles was either high-tech, supernatural, or both. Maybe if he was able to analyze it, he could find a way to harness it and use it to his benefit.

Before he could think any further, he remembered that there were more helicopters to deal with. Steeling himself for more combat, he leapt up to continue saving lives.

…A few minutes later…

X blasted the tail off of the last helicopter, and surveyed the wreckage before him. In the chaos, more aircraft had come from other places in the city, and he had to dispatch them all. The pilots and co-pilots behind him cheered, and he turned around to face them. Grinning, he chuckled sheepishly as he waved to them; his publicity where he came from was complicated, and it was strange to have such overwhelmingly positive reception.

One of the helicopters had belonged to some news-outlets, and the reporters he had saved were now asking him questions over each other. Their cameras had been possessed (and then destroyed by X), so they were doing it pen-and-paper style. "What's your name?" "Are you a superhero?" "Are you affiliated with La-"

He would have stayed to answer questions, but the direness of the situation had other Ideas. X turned away and readied his accelerators. "I'm sorry, there's no time. I've gotta go, bye!"

Now that he was free of aerial attackers, scaling the tower was a cinch. In no-time, he was standing on the very top balcony, surveying the city. Problematic machines and appliances wreaked havoc everywhere, but one thing that caught his eye was an unusually large bit of movement near what looked like a sports arena. That certainly looked significant. Now with a destination, he slid down the side of the tower and began dashing his way there.

Elsewhere

Somewhere else in the city, two individuals were slinging and vaulting across the city.

One, a girl with blue-tinted hair, wore earrings and a red skintight supersuit with black spots. Over her eyes, she wore a domino mask of the same color-scheme as her suit. Using some sort of yoyo, she launched it out and used it as a grappling-hook to swing across the city with a practiced rhythm.

The other, a guy with blonde hair and cat-ears on his head, wore a black suit with a leathery texture. He had a golden bell just below his neck and a tail-belt. Underneath his black domino mask, his eyes were completely green with black-slit pupils. With his extending stick-baton, he pole-vaulted across the city with just as much skill as the red girl but with a little more flair.

Having just freed some civilians from the clutches of evil appliances, they were now hot on the trail of Robostus's giant robot. The thing's giant metal feet couldn't avoid leaving tracks, which were conveniently obvious once spotted.

The girl in red gritted her teeth as she looked forward sternly. Robustus was likely the most dangerous villain yet. He was smarter than the both of them, had a whole army at his disposal, and didn't seem to have any item an Akuma could hide in.

And yet, as she stole a glance at her partner, she realized that the odds had never been in their favor. The villains always had some drastic advantage over them, yet her partner beside her stood as a testament to the fact that they always pulled through. And she knew they would this time. They had to.

Suddenly, something that sounded like gunfire interrupted her musings. A barrage of massive white needles whizzed past the two of them as a huge black and yellow _thing_ divebombed towards them from behind.

The two of them skidded to a stop on the rooftop and looked up at the newcomer, and were greeted by an unfamiliar sight. The already-described being hovered in place, back-lit by the sun. It spoke in a screechy voice with a slight electronic distortion. "Are you Ladybug and Cat Noir!?"

She narrowed her eyes at this strange being. Everyone in Paris knew who Ladybug and Cat Noir were. Thus, this guy must not be from Paris. He couldn't have been an akuma victim; no, this was something else. "Well then, he's obviously not from around here."

The cat-man smirked and nodded his agreement. "Tell me-ow-bout it." He turned to face the hovering Maverick. "Now wait just a minute, buster! Who's asking?"

"I am Warp Wasp!", it proudly proclaimed. "I serve Robostus! Now answer my question, fleshlings!"

Well, that was interesting. He had an Akuma-like name, but it was strange that he served Robostus. As far as they had seen, Robostus's control only extended to inanimate objects. However, this guy's use of the word 'fleshlings' suggested that he wasn't exactly… organic. The spotted girl stared up at him defiantly. "And if we are?"

Warp-Wasp's eyes glinted maliciously as he zipped a few meters closer. "Then I shall bring you to my master! Forcefully, if I must!"

The heroine thought to herself for a moment before nodding to him. "We'll go willingly!" Interrupting her partner's protest, she leaned in to whisper. "It'll save us the trouble of having to find him."

He 'ahhed', giving a thumbs up before looking back up to Warp Wasp. "Well, this is your lucky day! I'm Cat Noir, and this is Ladybug. You know, we were already on our way to see Robostus. You mind leading us there?"

Almost seeming disappointed that he didn't get to fight them, Warp Wasp began flying ahead of them. "Very well. This way!". To the heroes' slight dismay, he took off like a shot without giving them much reaction time. With a shrug, they used their own means of transportation to follow after him.

Soon enough, they came to the sports stadium. Ladybug was beginning to note that a surprising number of battles ended up here, but maybe that was just a coincidence. Cat Noir seemed to be having similar ideas, as he muttered something about animation budgets.

Warp Wasp flew up into the airspace of the arena, calling out to his master. "My lord, I have retrieved Ladybug and Cat Noir!"

At first nothing happened, and the duo began to feel at unease. The strange being above them was no Akuma, but they were related to Robostus in some way. They needed to figure this out, quick.

Elsewhere

X was able to take some of the streets he had already cleared, making his mad dash for the sports arena that much quicker. He got there in no-time, easily scaling the giant wall with a few wall-kicks. As soon as he reached the top and got a look inside, he dove for cover and cursed to himself.

Inside the arena were three beings; Warp Wasp and two others. They appeared to be human, but were dressed strangely from the other humans he had encountered here. They seemed to be animal-themed, so maybe they were Mavericks? Reinforcements that Warp-Wasp had called from their home-dimension, perhaps?

X crept forward carefully. He had to be stealthy, else he may provoke them into attacking. _Devil_, three mavericks at once. X decided not to engage, as that would only mean death for him in his current un-upgraded state. He had to find some way to confront them each separately.

He got to the front few rows of the stadium, but before he could formulate a plan, a whole fleet of different vehicles swerved into the arena. They quickly formed a circle around the two strange Reploids(?) as Warp-Wasp hovered out to the sidelines.

The Duo

Cat Noir jumped into a ready stance, shouting "They've got us surrounded!"

Ladybug began spinning her yoyo and flung it out towards some distant anchor. "Come on, let's find some high ground!"

As they leapt into the air, however, Warp Wasp teleported above them and swept his stinger-blades in wide arcs. "Not so fast, Hunters! Robostus still has business with you!"

Just then, the construction vehicles around them jumped into the fray. As they suddenly converged on each other to form none other than Robostus's Excavator-Mech, the right arm reached out and clamped itself onto them. With a cackle, Robostus pumped the mech's other arm in celebration. The heroes let out a cry of distress as their arms were pinned to their sides.

Cat Noir groaned in discomfort, as he was suck facing into the jaws of the excavator. "I told you that giant hard drive would be trouble!"

Ladybug tugged at her arms, but the excavator was clamped too tight. "How about you give us a _Cataclysm_ right now?"

"I can't! I can barely breathe!"

Nearby

X watched with alarm as the vehicles suddenly merged into a giant robot and nabbed the two Reploids(?). He had to do something, and quick. Thankfully, the giant robot seemed to have a slower processing speed and was taking forever to come to its next action.

By the time he formulated a plan, though, a wave of green energy washed over the area and a sudden attack began in X's mind. His optical LEDs changed into strings of binary code as he slumped over. Unlike any virus he had ever seen, this strange energy almost completely took him over.

However, three-hundred years of diagnostics weren't for nothing. The focus of the attack was elsewhere in the city, and his core operating-system reacted to such things at lightning speed. He began fighting off the technological onslaught, hoping he could save those Reploids(?) in time.

Lady and Cat

"Warp-Wasp, get those jewels for me, would you?"

"Gladly, my lord!" Finally having something to do, Warp Wasp moved in with sadistic delight, first going for Ladybug. But each time he tried to grab the earrings, Ladybug jerked out of the way. However, it was only a matter of time before he got them.

Robostus watched on eagerly. "Look Max, I'm going to be a real human in fifty-three seconds!"

Ladybug was beginning to lose hope as Robostus engaged in telepathy with Hawk-Moth, likely on account of his deviations from the plan. It seemed that even Hawk-Moth couldn't keep up with this super-computer.

Warp-Wasp suddenly gave upon the earrings and moved in on Cat Noir's ring. "Ohh, Now's the time to come up with a bright idea!", the hero exclaimed worriedly.

Ladybug watched on with horror as Warp-Wasp's hand neared the ring. "I'm sorry, Cat Noir!"

But then, the unexpected happened.

A distant sound came to everyone's ears, the sound of something gathering energy. Starting at a low-pitch and ending at a high, it was released as a crackling ball of energy hurled itself straight into Warp-Wasp's side and blasted him away from Cat Noir.

A blue something whizzed into the sports arena, quickly closing in on the action in the center. Whatever it was, it was nimble. It leapt off of the Mechscavator's knee and onto the arm that held Lady and Cat. Sunlight glinted off of blue metal as a white gloved hand stretched out in reassurance. "Don't worry, I'm here to help!"

Now that Ladybug could see him clearly, she realized that he seemed to be around their age. Perhaps he was a Miraculous holder? Well, she sure hoped so, but she was glad for the help no matter what. With a fully charged blast of the same energy that got Warp Wasp, he obliterated the hydraulics that kept the two so securely trapped.

As they tumbled to the turf, the blue guy leapt off of the Mechscavator and started running towards Warp Wasp. "You fight your bad guy, I'll take mine! Whoever's done first can help the other!" And with that, he ran; no, _dashed_ off at inhumane speeds.

Cat Noir nodded, spinning up his staff and preparing for battle. "Divide and conquer; good idea!"

Ladybug nodded affirmative and got into a ready stance. "Sounds fair. _**Lucky Charm!**_"

X

X vented a sigh of relief as he settled back into his usual rhythm. This was what he was used to; just him and a Maverick fighting for the other's extermination. It wasn't that he enjoyed it, but it was simply what he had come to do best.

Just as he was about to get the jump on Warp Wasp, he caught a blazing pinkish-red light from the other battle. The red Reploid(?) had summoned some kind of harp that shared her color scheme; X found it a little strange, but decided not to dwell on it.

Thanks to the fact that this was a mere continuation of a previous battle, X kept the upper hand the entire time. He did miss having walls to jump from, but he had fought plenty of battles with nothing but a floor. He was just glad there weren't any edges to fall from. However, there was something strange about the way Warp Wasp was fighting. The Maverick in question was fighting with self-preservation tactics. The odd thing about that was that Mavericks that were as far gone as he was supposed to be would only fight with destruction in mind.

As X was about to land the final blow, Warp Wasp teleported to the ground and got to his knees, getting right up close to X. "Dearest hunter, please spare me! I'll do anything! I-I'll give you my Warp-power, anything!"

X faltered, _hard_. This was unprecedented. Could this mean that the virus could be cured? That there was finally an end in sight? Not an hour ago, this very being was relentlessly trying to murder him. Now, though-

Taking advantage of his hesitation, Warp Wasp lunged forward to impale X with a stinger. This did not go well for him, as X's combat protocols were still engaged. Easily sidestepping the attack, X shot directly into the Maverick's back, rupturing its power core. The usual explosions happened, and the ENRG from the Maverick's core flowed through X's data crystal on his forehead. Thanks to the information embedded inside, he now had Warp-Wasp's complete blueprints.

Not forgetting the battle nearby, he turned just in time to see the giant robot turn to rust-dust with a claw-swipe from the Cat-Reploid(?). X dashed over to congratulate them, amazed at their destructive power, only to find that they were frantically engaged with something in the sky as a group of vehicles swarmed around them.

Lady and Cat

Just as the Mechscavator was reduced to a pile of scrap, a massive explosion of energy startled them all. As all heads turned to see what happened, it became obvious that the blue guy had defeated his opponent and was making his way to their side. As soon as he got there, he hopped up onto a car and readied that arm-gun of his. "Wait, you guys already defeated that big robot. Why aren't we taking out these infected cars?"

Cat Noir quickly explained, pointing up at Robostus. "The cars aren't the problem, he is!"

The cars were getting more frantic, so they had to keep jumping from vehicle to vehicle. Blue guy looked up and quickly spotted the little robot and aimed his arm-gun-thingy at him. "That little thing? I can shoot it down easy."

Ladybug jumped over and forced the guy's arm down, ending that line of thought. "Wait! We have to find the peaceful solution!"

The new hero paused and thought for a moment before asking a question, "Well, what do you suggest?"

Ladybug grinned and held up the harp. "Follow my lead."

Seeming to get the gist, newcomer nodded and aimed his charging arm-cannon upward. With superhuman strength, Ladybug lobbed the harp up at Robostus, who easily dodged out of the way. X sent a half-charged blast, which the small guy dodged just as easily. "Really? Is that your last move?", he asked smugly.

Ladybug grinned as the two projectiles intercepted in mid-air. "Speaking too soon is a human weakness, Robostus!"

The strings from the now-totaled harp fell down and entangled Robostus's propeller. He shouted in surprise as gravity finally started working on him, but Ladybug managed to catch him with her yoyo. Wide-eyed, Robostus tried to rev his propeller. "What was that?"

Ladybug smiled and pulled out the flash-drive. "That was wit, and a little bit of luck."

Robustus's eyes resumed their angry display. "Ha, you're wrong, Ladybug! The game is still on!" In a last-ditch effort to save himself, he released a new wave of his strange green energy. In an interesting turn of events, the blue hero thudded to his knees as his eyes turned into binary code.

Deeply unsettled, Ladybug began shouting at Robostus. "What did you do to him?! I thought your powers only affect machines?!"

The blue hero stood and shakily aimed his arm-gun at Ladybug, while Robostus 'grinned' maliciously. "When I dealt with Hawk-Moth, I sensed a new robotic presence! Meet your destruction, Ladybug and Cat Noir!"

As blue powered up a shot and aimed it at the heroes, Ladybug decisively shoved the drive into Robostus's 'mouth'. "What?! What do you think you're- ERROR. ERROR. EERRRROOoorrr…"

X

X watched in awe as the plan fell perfectly into place. He was glad to finally be able to find a peaceful solution, but stayed determined in case something went wrong. But then, the cyberattack returned.

As he struggled to fight off the nigh-overwhelming force, he felt himself stand and ready his buster. Panic flooded his emotional matrix as he realized what was happening. He fought with new determination, but this new onslaught was aimed directly at him. While he managed to keep his thoughts safe, he felt his physical control slip.

But then, something strange happened. His faculties returned just in time, and he just barely managed to direct his X-buster up and away from red-reploid before it discharged. He didn't see what happened, but he saw a small data-storage container installed into the little Maverick. A black butterfly emerged from inside its central processor, trying desperately to flutter away. However, the red Reploid opened up her yoyo and caught it, reciting some sort of line that he couldn't hear thanks to his fuzzy audio. When she released it, the little creature was pure white.

After that, she collected the remains of the harp and tossed it in the air, adding two words to the action: "_**Miraculous Ladybug!**_"

X was astounded by what happened next. The harp exploded. Not violently, but spectacularly. Waves of spotted energy placed all of the vehicles where they should be, and repaired all of the damaged turf in the arena. It was likely that all other damage was fixed, something that left X speechless.

As red-girl tended to Markov and Max, X pulled cat-guy aside. "Hey, what was that? You know, the glowy thing and the rusty thing. And what happened to the little robot?"

Seeming surprised, cat-reploid(?) tilted his head in curiosity. "Oh, that? That was M'lady's _Lucky Charm_. It repairs all the damage from Akuma Fights. And the 'rusty thing' is my _Cataclysm_, it's guaranteed to destroy one object, or assembly of objects. Oh, and don't worry about Markov, he's okay now. Say, what's your name?"

Still in awe at the fact that the stadium was empty now save for the four(five?) of them, X took a second to answer. "X. My name is X."

Cat-guy snorted, obviously thinking it was funny, though X wasn't sure why. "Well, mysterious name, Mr. '_X'. _I'm Cat Noir, and that lovely lady over there is Ladybug."

Now it was X's turn to be curious. "Cat Noir? Ladybug? Just what kind of Reploids _are_ you?"

Cat Noir just gave him a blank stare. "What the heck is a Reploid?"

Just then, both his ring and Ladybug's earrings gave a distinct beeping sound. Cat Noir began backing away. "Uh, sorry 'X', we gotta go! _Cat-_tch ya later!"

"Wait! I have so many questions!" X moved to follow them, but they were already long gone. By the way that they moved, he could tell he wouldn't be able to keep up.

With a sigh, he turned around. And yet the most eerie sight he had seen all day confronted him.

There before him, perfectly intact, was Warp Wasp, but not quite. As X approached him with his buster drawn, he realized that there was no-one home. The Maverick's optical LEDs were completely off, and despite him standing up, he was completely motionless. It seemed that this "Lucky Charm" could repair Reploids, but not restore consciousness.

He noticed the green-shirt kid and the little 'Markov' watching him as he draped Warp-Wasp's dormant frame over his shoulder. He didn't know where he was, but he knew that Warp-Wasp was his key to getting back.

Later, Elsewhere in Paris

In a vague out-of-the-way location, a young girl kneeled across from a short old man. The girl had the same hair and eyes as Ladybug, but with casual civilian clothes. The old man was balding and had a Hawaiian shirt as his signature attire. Nearby sat two small creatures unlike anything else in the world. One red and one green, they were themed after a ladybug and a turtle respectively.

The girl, named Marinette, was thinking about the conversation they just had. With the new revelation of what she and her partner were protecting, she now had more determination than ever. No way was she ever going to let the Miraculous fall into the hands of Hawk Moth.

However, there was one thing on her mind that she needed to ask the old man about. "Master Fu, are there any blue or yellow Miraculous missing?"

Master Fu stroked his goatee for a second before answering. "Well, besides the Peacock Miraculous, all are accounted for. May I ask why?"

Marinette thought back to her encounter earlier that day. "Well, when we fought today's Akuma, there was this weird blue-guy and a flying bee-person. I was wondering if they could be Miraculous holders."

After a moment of tea-sipping, the old Guardian scrunched his eyebrows in thought. "Describe them to me."

And so she did. She described their weird armor, the weird language choices, and the way that they fought. With each new piece of information, Master Fu got more concerned. "And you say this 'blue-guy' was affected by the Akuma's technological control?"

Marinette nodded affirmative, and Master Fu 'hmm'ed before voicing his thoughts. "There are no Miraculous that fit those descriptions. The Outfit Manifestations that the Kwamis create never completely conceal faces, nor do they leave faces unconcealed, and the protective magic means there's no need for physical armor. Also, this 'Warp-Wasp' could not possibly have the Bee Miraculous, as it is in our possession and does not grant the power of flight to brand-new holders."

As Marinette listened, she remembered how strange it was that Warp Wasp had obeyed Robostus's every command, and that the blue-guy had reacted so severely to the tech-wave. And then it clicked. "Maybe they're robots!"

Master Fu was slightly surprised by her sudden conclusion, but then stroked his goatee in thought again. "That's quite the accusation, but it could very well be the truth. They seem very powerful from your descriptions, and we don't know nearly enough about them."

Marinette nodded her agreement. "I'll meet with Cat Noir tonight and see if we can track him down."

Meanwhile…

After contacting each-other through their yoyo and baton-phones, they decided to meet on a rooftop near the school. Thanks to their incredible mobility, it only took them a minute or two to get there.

Cat was first to speak as he leaned against his baton. "Well Mi'Lady, it seems we have something to talk about today."

Ladybug nodded as she gazed out at the city. "It's that new blue hero. I think I've found out something about him."

Cat Noir chuckled as he got up and twirled his staff for a few seconds. "Oh, yeah, I was meaning to tell you. He said his name was 'X'."

She raised an eyebrow at that. "What kind of name is 'X'? Is he trying to be all mysterious?" Cat Noir simply shrugged, going back to messing with his staff. After a second of thought, Ladybug faced her partner and steeled herself for the accusation she was about to make. "He's not a Miraculous holder. I think that he's a robot."

Cat Noir tilted his head and reviewed the facts before nodding in agreement. "Yeah, that sounds reasonable. He did react weirdly to Robostus, and he was really confused about our powers."

Ladybug hummed her agreement. "Well, I have another hour before I have to get back to my other identity. How about we see if we can track this guy down?"

"_Claw_some idea, Mi'Lady."

Ladybug ignored the pun and got to business. "Let's see if there are any sightings on the Ladyblog."

After doing a bit of research through the devices built into their equipment, they found that a lot of people had seen him at the Eiffel tower. Now with a destination, they swung/vaulted in the direction of their quarry.

Elsewhere

X had found a wagon he could carry Warp-Wasp in, and was now dragging him all over this new city. Now that he realized he may be here a while, he wasted no time in deciding that the tower would make a perfect temporary base. As a towering landmark, it was visible everywhere he went, so he could always find his way back to it. It also made a great vantage point.

He kept getting strange looks from passerby, which made sense as he was odd enough to warrant such attention. He chuckled lightly to himself as he realized how bizarre he looked; a blue-armored teen dragging a deactivated giant robot bug behind him in a red-flyer wagon. While in his world he would be stopped by law-enforcement for a variety of reasons, right now he was simply an oddity. He saw people aiming handheld devices at him, presumably taking pictures or video.

He eventually came to the base of the tower, where he found that it was actually quite a popular tourist destination; perfect for listening in on conversations in order to learn about this world. Ignoring the people who were stopping and staring at him, he found his way to an elevator and pressed the button to get to the top. He had to switch elevators at one point, but it was no big deal. He could easily scale it, but time wasn't an issue at the moment; not to mention the fact that he was lugging around a dormant Maverick which would make climbing much harder.

As he left the elevator at the top of the tower, he took a look around. There was some sort of apartment inside, and a balcony with a protective fence facing inward. X was momentarily puzzled as to why the fence was there; did this world's inhabitants lack common sense? Or were they simply overprotective of the visitors here?

With a shrug and a sigh, he moved on. He needed a place to buckle down, and the roof up there was as good a place as any. It wasn't ideal, but it would work for the time being. After picking up Warp Wasp and jumping up past the fence, he sat down, laid back, and interlaced is fingers behind his helmet. No harm in getting some rest before tackling the situation.

Over the next few hours, he took time to dig through his new blueprints of Warp Wasp. He was stunned by the sheer complexity of the designs within the Maverick, as it was quite unlike anything he had seen; quantum-manipulation was no simple accomplishment. However, he had to tough through it; if he were to have any chance of getting home, he would need to understand these blueprints inside and out. Plus, he had to convert Warp Wasp's weapon system into a format his X-buster could use.

Enraptured with the contents of his own mind, he was oblivious to the approach of two people from behind. A black-clawed tap on his shoulder shook him from his stupor, and he turned around to see Ladybug and Cat Noir. The black-clad teen extended his hand to help X up, which the reploid gladly accepted. "Hey X, I never got to thank you for helping us avoid a Cat-tastrophe. I hope we aren't intruding on anything?"

X dusted himself off as he fully withdrew from his internal edit mode. "No problem; it's nothing that can't be finished later. What's up?"

Cat Noir hopped up to balance on one of the protrusions while Ladybug went over to sit on a cross-beam. "We have a few questions for you, if you don't mind."

X shrugged, not sure what to do with himself as this whole experience was a bit awkward. "Ask away. I have a few questions myself, actually."

Cat grinned and stole the first inquiry. "Ok, first question. Are you a good guy or a bad guy?"

After a light chuckle, X gave the duo a reassuring smile. "I can assure you, the safety of the public is a very high priority for me."

The two shared a look that was somewhat relief and partway confusion. Ladybug continued. "Two questions: where are you from, and why are you here? You don't seem like you're from Paris."

Paris. Okay, so that was where he was. Not that he remembered any place like that where he came from, but it was nice to have a name for where he was.

He decided to not beat around the bush and just say it directly to avoid unnecessary confusion. He gazed out to the skyline as he considered his wording. "This is going to sound crazy, but I'm pretty sure I'm either from the future, an alternate universe, or both. As to why I'm here, I'm not here on purpose. I was in pursuit of a Maverick- err, a criminal. That one, actually." He gestured towards Warp Wasp. "Warp Wasp has- or had -spatial manipulation abilities that opened a wormhole to this universe, and I simply pursued."

Their eyes widened as the revelation hit them. Cat Noir glanced over to Ladybug and tapped a finger on his stick thing. "So now he's been dealt with."

"But you need his abilities to get home." Ladybug looked over to X to check whether she was right.

X nodded. "You guys are spot-on." He caught Cat Noir's grin and realized the pun he had made on accident. Ladybug looked slightly startled, but X decided that wasn't important at the moment. "I have his blueprints, but they're too complex for me to work out just yet. As of right now, I'm pretty much stranded." As he said that last bit, he looked off into the distance wistfully; the intricacies of his predicament had hit him once more. He either needed to figure out how to sustain himself, or find a way back home. He wasn't sure yet which one was more important. "At least it's got a good view."

Snapping himself out of his funk, he turned back towards the duo. "My turn. You're obviously not Reploids, so what exactly are you? Enhanced humans or something?"

Cat Noir twirled his thing in his fingers. "I guess you could say that. We're human, but we have these magic jewels called Miraculous that give us our powers. Mine's the ring of the Black Cat; it has the power of destruction. My Cata- uh, power, can instantly destroy any one thing. Even saying its name activates it, so I have to be careful." He pointed to his ring.

Ladybug put up a hand to brush the hair away from her ears so that X could see her earrings. "The Ladybug earrings have the power of creation. It's power analyzes the situation and creates a peaceful solution through an object, and repairs any damage the fight causes. But Miraculous don't just do those things, they also give us super-strength, agility, and durability, as well as weapons like my yo-yo and Cat's baton."

Cat extended his staff for emphasis as she mentioned it. "Ok, my turn again. Are you a robot?" He and Ladybug looked at him in anticipation. It seemed this was something they were very curious about.

Straight to the point, it seemed. X smiled and nodded, deciding to keep it simple. "Yeah."

Ladybug gaped as Cat raised his eyebrows in astonishment. It seemed the bug-themed heroine couldn't help herself as she jumped up and almost started prodding X's face. "But you're so… _lifelike_!"

X grinned proudly, also shying away from the red-gloved hand. "Yeah, that was my creator's intention. I may be made of different stuff, but I can think and feel just like any human."

Ladybug composed herself and prepared for another question. "Ok. You mentioned the term Reploid. What is that?"

This momentarily caught X off guard, but he was able to mask that. It did make sense that they wouldn't know what a Reploid was; he was just so used to them being ubiquitous that it almost didn't occur to him that they wouldn't know about them. "Well, the Reploids are a race of robots like me with their own consciousness. Since I'm the one they're all based off of, I'm technically not a Reploid, but Warp-Wasp is. Err… was, before he became a Maveri- er, a criminal. It's the first thing I thought of to explain your powers." He took a moment to decide his next question, snapping his fingers as he thought of it. "Ah, what was that thing we fought today? That… Robostus, was it?"

Ladybug took the lead in this explanation, straightening up with a serious expression. "That was an Akuma victim. Hawk Moth, the holder of the Butterfly Miraculous, has the power to turn people into supervillains. He targets negative emotions and sends out a little black butterfly- an Akuma- to possess them. He'll stop at nothing to get our Miraculous, which is why we have to stay vigilant."

X hummed in thought, stroking his chin for a moment. It sounded a lot like Mavericks, but he would avoid telling these heroes about them to preserve their relative peace of mind. "Well, I'm glad that this Akuma business can be reversed and resolved peacefully." X couldn't help but show a little bit of sadness at the fact that such options weren't available to him, but shrugged it off in favor of a more neutral disposition.

The two were momentarily perplexed at his odd comment, but seemed to have moved on. Cat Noir's attention was caught by Warp-Wasp's wings catching a little bit of the breeze. "Is that bug-bot permanantly down, or…?"

X shook his head. "Will he reactivate? No; not on his own. It takes an experienced scientist to jump-start a Reploid's consciousness." What he didn't say was that he knew just how to do that, though he felt like he should leave that part out for now.

They seemed to trust him somewhat, and he found them to be trustworthy. He wasn't sure where to take the conversation, and it seemed that neither were they.

Cat Noir hopped up and started spinning his staff idly. Attempting to move things along, he started punning relentlessly. "Well, the cats seem to be out of their bags, and it looks like curiosity killed 'em. Meow's about we look fur a better place for X to stay while he's here?"

X smiled as he hoisted Warp Wasp over his shoulder. He thought he was alone, but even in an alternate dimension there were heroes to fight beside. "That sounds fantastic."

Meanwhile

"I'm really sorry for scaring you so bad, Max! I promise to keep my emotions under better control."

"It's hardly an issue, Markov. I simply wish there was a way I could bring you to school without causing a disturbance."

In an unspecified part of Paris, Max and Markov had arrived home and were discussing the events of the day while they worked on their latest computer program. The room was semi-lit, with the perfect balance between the brightness of the computer screen and the rest of the room. Max sat in a swiveling computer chair while Markov hovered next to him, both interacting with the computer in front of them.

Markov changed his display to wink face, signaling that he already had the situation figured out. "No worries, Max. I can wait here and work on our projects while you go to…" Much to Max's confusion, Markov trailed off with a blank expression on his face. It was as if, deep within his coding, there was some sort of itch…

Max looked over at his friend with a concerned expression. "Markov? Are you all right?"

At that, the little robot jumped in surprise. "OH! Sorry Max." His display changed to question marks as he came back to reality. "Uh… I'm fine. What was it we were talking about?"

Max raised an eyebrow, not fully believing his friend, but decided to let it go for now. "Would you really be okay staying home while I go to school?"

The little robot raised his claw in his version of a thumbs-up, his display changing to a happy expression. "Of course, Max! I'll still be able to spend time with you!"

Max smiled, put at ease by Markov's cheeriness. "I can only hope to someday be as optimistic as you, Markov."

And with that, they happily got back to their computer coding, blissfully oblivious to the subtle influence of an age-old conflict…

A/N:

_**Thanks for reading this. I have some amazing plans for it, though I don't plan for it to go very far beyond a certain point.**_

_**To anyone worried about Ben 10,000, have no fear. I fully intend to return to that story. Excuse my cliché, but school hit like a truck and I lost my muse to the depths of Tartarus. It seems to be coming back, though. I have quite a few plans in my back pocket, and this one is my definite favorite. I love finding common ground between stories, and the parallel between Mavericks and Akumas was too juicy to pass up.**_

_**Anyways, here's to the launch of a new awesome story!**_


	2. Dark Owl and Ampere Albatross

**A/N**

**To the reviewers: Thank you, it means a lot that you guys are enjoying this! And as for your speculations… maybe. Wait and see.**

**I'm planning to have this span the second season of Miraculous, so there will be multiple time skips. This episode involves a short time skip and a flashback to a point within said timeskip. My apologies if it gets confusing, I just think it flows well this way. I've skipped over Gigantitan, for reasons stated within the story. I'm going with the airing order of the episodes, unless there's a glaring flaw in the timeline. (I was, and still am, angry at the Party Crasher episode for spoiling several new heroes before their debut.)**

**As a little side note, Italics is meant to represent dialogue over transmission.**

**Anyway, here's another chapter of Miraculous X: Red, Black, and Blue!**

Chapter 2: Dark Owl and Ampere Albatross

The Grand Paris has seen many important guests in its time, from rock stars like Jagged Stone to royalty like Prince Ali. However, never in history has there been a superhero taking up residence there. Until now, that is.

The elevator dinged as the doors slid open, and out walked the Hotel's latest guest. Appearing to be a teen in blue armor, this was none other than Paris's new robotic superhero, X. In his arms he held a cardboard box filled with mechanical tools and parts, which should have been heavy, yet he carried it with ease.

He very quickly reached his door and set down the box of parts to get inside. Entering his suite, his optics flicked to the corner to make sure that the dormant Warp Wasp hadn't gone anywhere. Sure enough, the Maverick was standing upright suspended by a few tethers from the ceiling. Satisfied, he set the box down again and flopped onto the bed tiredly.

The past few weeks had been a rush. Ladybug and Cat Noir had explained his predicament to the mayor, who happily set aside a room in the hotel so he could have a reasonable home base. He even allotted Parisian government funds to help with the construction of a portal device. After all, X had rescued his daughter from rampaging cars, so it was the least he could do. (Not that X remembered doing so; the yellow-jacketed teen must have blended in with the other humans he had saved. And honestly, he had never seen a more corrupt government official, but he wasn't complaining.) Now, it was there at the hotel that he was trying to build a portal to get home. It was only recently that his custom-ordered tools arrived; he could finally begin working.

Deciding to relax a bit before he got to work, he reminisced about one of the more interesting things that had happened to him. After saving reporters from every news helicopter in Paris, everyone in the city knew about him. They had taken to calling him the "Blue Bomber", which he felt misrepresented him, but at least it was positive publicity. Every news network was scrambling to get an interview, or any information whatsoever, but it was Nadja Chamack who got to him first.

[Weeks earlier]

As the network logo faded, every screen in Paris was graced by the image of Nadja Chamack sitting across from none other than the Blue Bomber himself. The former was as composed as usual, while the latter seemed a little out of his element. Nadja opened the show with her signature catchphrase. "Don't be bemused, it's just the news. This is Nadja Chamack reporting in with an exclusive interview with the one and only 'Blue Bomber'. Welcome to the show, Blue."

X nodded his thanks and fought to not look at the cameras. "Thank you, it's a pleasure to be here. And please, call me Mega Man X, or X for short."

Nadja smiled and proceeded with the interview. "Will do. X, you seem to have come out of nowhere. The question on every Parisian's mind: are you a Miraculous hero like Ladybug and Cat Noir?"

X chuckled a bit. "Actually, I'm not. You may find this difficult to believe, but I'm a robot."

Nadja gaped at that. "But you're so lifelike!"

X rubbed the back of his neck in slight embarrassment. "Heh, that's exactly what Ladybug said. My creator designed me to be able to think, feel, and make decisions on my own. The human-like face is just to make me more relatable."

Without missing a beat, Nadja continued. "It's amazing that we haven't heard of you yet. You'd think scientific advancements like that would be announced with fanfare. Were you made specifically for heroics, or did you take to it on your own?"

He had to think about that one for a second. "I was actually designed with no specific purpose; I had the potential for anything. That's where the 'X' comes from; the mathematic variable. Anyway, I could have chosen anything, but I ended up on the path of threat-elimination, so I guess I've never really thought of myself as a hero. As for why you haven't heard of me, well, I'm from an alternate universe."

Nadja's jaw dropped further, if that was possible. She composed herself and proceeded. "Amazing. That would definitely explain it. So, you've never been to Paris before now?"

X shook his head. "Never. I'm pretty sure it doesn't exist where I'm from."

"What's your favorite thing so far?"

X smiled to himself as he thought about his experiences in the city. "Besides the people, it's got to be the architecture; especially the Eiffel Tower. I've seen impressive skyscrapers in my day, but that thing is an architectural marvel. I've already been up and down the elevators about a hundred times."

Nadja smiled at his enthusiasm. "We're glad you like it. Do you know how long you'll be here?"

X frowned slightly as he thought about it. "I actually have no idea. I was tracking down a… robot villain, we call them Mavericks, from my universe who could warp space and time. Some of you might have seen him; he was wasp themed. Anyway, I've defeated him but now I need to reverse engineer his technology to warp back home. I'm not sure how long that'll take, but I'll definitely enjoy my stay."

"We're certainly glad to have you. It seems you've missed an Akuma or two since your debut versus Robostus. Any reason why?"

X sighed at that. "Well, Ladybug and Cat Noir are a lot faster than me over long distances. By the time I got to where they fought Gigantitan, they had already dealt with him. If I was here long term I would try to set up a teleportation network, but for now I'm just stuck with running everywhere I go."

"Well, we hope to see you in action more often. Anyways, can you tell us anything about your powers? Many Parisians have been speculating, but we would like to hear it from the man, or _bot_, himself."

"I'm glad you asked. I'm equipped with an acceleration module; I can jump a good fifteen or twenty feet in the air, and my dash gear can propel me horizontally faster than most vehicles. But the main event is my X-Buster." With a flurry of shifting panels, X formed his buster without activating it. The Production team behind the cameras were thoroughly wowed by the quick high-tech transformation. "This thing can not only condense energy into plasma blasts but can also partially replicate the abilities of robots I have the blueprints of. I've just about deciphered Warp Wasp's blueprints into a format I can use."

"Wow, that's certainly impressive. So, tell me what you think about Ladybug and Cat Noir?"

"Well, when I first met them, I actually thought they were robots. See, where I come from, there're these robots called Reploids that have become pretty ubiquitous. Fun fact, their foundational engineering is actually based on me. They were the only explanation I had for a humanoid with abilities like that."

The interview went on for a time, with X giving descriptions of his home universe and showing off the holograms he could project from the crystal on his helmet. By the time it came to a close, the city of Paris was much better acquainted with its third hero.

[Elsewhere]

Gabriel Agreste watched the interview with rapt attention, his fingers tapping the desk incessantly. He began to rant to no-one in particular; the butterfly-like creature beside him knew better than to interrupt. "This 'X' is extremely powerful. He will certainly get in our way. In fact, our mission may be impossible while he's here. Two superheroes is one thing; but with _three_, and one always on duty…"

The designer rested his elbows on his desk and rubbed his temples. He couldn't see a way around this besides-

Besides finding a way to Akumatize X himself. Robostus, as a robot, had been one of his most powerful Akumas, so the idea had merit. X was obviously more powerful in his natural state and would make an incredible Akuma. However, he appeared to be far more advanced and would likely prove even harder to control. That idea would be placed on the backburner for now; at least until he could figure out how to do it safely and successfully.

He was so deep in thought that he missed the end of the interview and was interrupted from his musings when Nathalie brought in a plate of dinner for him. He was about to thank her when she gasped. "Monsieur, look!"

He glanced up and saw, on his computer screen, a wireframe face over a black background. It appeared to be a bald man with a strong chin; he had triangular shapes under his eyes and a circular shape in his forehead. Gabriel stood and glared at the screen in surprise. He was supposed to have the best security in all of Paris, both physically and digitally. This _thing_ shouldn't have been able to hack his system. Suddenly, a deep baritone voice filled with static emanated from the speakers. The wireframe's mouth moved almost perfectly with with the audio. "_Greetings, Hawk Moth. It brings me immeasurable joy to finally be able to contact you._"

Gabriel stepped back in alarm, then composed himself into his usual steely demeanor. "What are you talking about!? I couldn't possibly be-"

The face narrowed its eyes smugly. "_Let's not play pretend. I have spent the past week investigating your identity; there is no point in hiding from me. You need not fear, as my intentions are not malicious; I would like to propose an alliance._"

Gabriel narrowed his eyes. "I'm listening."

The figure smiled. "_Good. My name is Sigma, and I am what you would call an artificial intelligence. You are worried that X will throw a wrench in your plans, correct?_"

"Indeed. And you have a plan to deal with him?"

"_I do. I am from the same dimension as X and possess the technical know-how to create robots more powerful than him. Combined with your Akumas, they should overwhelm the heroes with no problem. You will get the Miraculous in no time._"

"And yet you require…"

Sigma cackled. "_You're a sharp one. Should you accept, I will send you a list of materials to purchase in bulk. Once they have arrived, I will personally see to the construction of the most powerful army you will ever know, as well as a body for myself._"

Gabriel thought it over. Having an ally would be very nice. He didn't know whether he could trust this 'Sigma', but he didn't have many other options. He just wanted Emile back so badly…

He smiled sinisterly. "Consider it done, partner."

Sigma smiled back, and the transmission ended.

[The present]

X was unpacking his box of tools when he heard a knock on the door. Wondering who could possibly know he was there, he went and answered it. On the other side of the doorframe stood quite the sight. He was tall and dressed in a black leather suit with gold epaulets. His black hair was dyed purple at the ends, and he wore a touch of eyeliner. But the most bizarre thing about him was the crocodile he had on a leash.

X broke from his stupor and greeted him. "Hi, can I help you?"

The man posed majestically. "Hello, new neighbor! I was about to take Fang for a walk and decided to finally say hi! I've been on tour for a while and haven't had a chance to meet you!"

X regarded him curiously. As bizarre as he was, he seemed nice. "Well, uh, mission accomplished?"

The guy laughed heartily. "Haha, that's a riot! Wait, you don't know who I am, right? Being from another dimension and all. That's so rock-and-roll! That means you're unbiased! A fresh perspective on my music! I'll have to show you a new song I'm working on. Anyway, I'm Jagged Stone, the biggest rock star in all of Europe. Welcome to Paris, my friend!" The crocodile tugged on its leash. Jagged began moving further down the hallway. "Duty calls! I'll see you later, neighbor!"

"See ya!" X grinned whimsically as the musician retreated down the hallway. A new friend, it seemed.

Now left to his own devices, he locked his room and finished unpacking the box of tools. Finding the one he needed, he approached the dormant Maverick in the corner.

When X told the Miraculous heroes that it took an experienced scientist to reactivate a Maverick, he wasn't lying. He just said nothing to imply that he was capable of just that; he had helped create the first few Reploids after all. However, reactivating Warp Wasp was far from his intentions; he planned to dissect him.

X retrieved a stepstool and used it to gain the height he needed to reach Warp Wasp's main chassis. Tilting the Maverick's head to the side, he reached down underneath its collar with a tool to begin disassembly. With a resounding _click_, the first catch released. He did the same with the shoulders and the solar plexus until the breastplate came loose. X set it to the side; he could reuse the metal for another project, or perhaps even the frame for the portal. When he lifted the frame away from the internal components, the sight that greeted him took his artificial breath away. He had studied Warp Wasp's blueprints and synthesized a usable weapon for his variable system, but that was nothing compared to seeing the real thing. The sheer complexity within was nothing short of spectacular. It was elegant. It was concise. It was genius. It was a shame X was about to dismantle the whole thing.

Getting into the real meat of the work, he turned on the news in the background. The voice of Nadja Chamack accompanied footage of a large man in an owl costume. "_We now know the true identity of the man who has proclaimed himself as Paris' new superhero. The Owl is non-other than the principal of Françoise Dupont High School, Mr. Damocles!_"

X chuckled, shook his head sadly, and got to work carefully removing high-tech components from Warp Wasp's chassis. He had heard about this 'Owl' character, and really felt bad for the guy now that his identity was out in the open. He knew how much the man was being ridiculed as the clumsiest hero in Paris, and now he wouldn't be able to escape it.

Not thinking too much more about it, he continued his work. He figured he could reuse most of the components for the Warp Gate, but he would have to synthesize new ones to alter the method with which the warp-energy was utilized. The trick was figuring out which ones…

[That night]

"_Citizens of Paris, listen to me very carefully! With just one slight movement, I can release a rope holding onto a city bus and all the animals inside will crash down upon this poor helpless little kitten! Muahahaha!_"

X looked up from the assortment of components he was working on in alarm. Sure enough, his cooking show was interrupted by footage of a bus-full of assorted creatures suspended above a kitten. X set down his tools and stood to fully face the television screen. He had seen higher stakes quite often, but still… "That's a problem."

The screen changed to show the whole Eiffel Tower, now with rows of strange cannisters installed in the ironworks. X, however, caught a little bit of lightning among the clouds, and he swore he saw a large… almost birdlike silhouette. The voice continued before he could ruminate on this. "_And if anyone should be 'tempt to come and save the animals, beware! It is all rigged! Liquid nitrogen will automatically douse the feet of the Eiffel Tower, freezing them to negative seven-hundred degrees, and making them more fragile than glass! They will collapse, and the bus will flatten our cute kitten friend! Muahahaha!_" The screen then changed to depict what X could only assume was Paris' latest Akuma. "_Ladybug, Cat Noir, the only way you can save these sweet animals is to come and hand your Miraculous over to me! And you only have 10 minutes! Follow the Owl-Signal!_"

And with that, the transmission ended. X furrowed his brows and exited the doors to his balcony. This Owl-guy seemed like the kind of thing Ladybug and Cat Noir could handle on a daily basis, but the silhouette he saw in the video made him slightly worried. He didn't usually go out of his way to rescue simple animals, but this Akuma was giving him an odd ominous feeling.

Not wanting to miss this battle, he leapt out into the night.

[A few minutes later…]

X spotted Ladybug and Cat Noir standing on a rooftop overlooking the stadium, where the Akuma had set up his signal. He jumped from rooftop to rooftop until he was standing side-by-side with them. He smiled jokingly. "Aw, you guys waited for me?"

Ladybug nodded and turned to face him. "We had a funny feeling about this one. We figured we'd need your help."

Cat Noir kept looking up and around at the sky. "Yeah, there's been thunder every now and then and I keep hearing this whooshing sound; almost like…"

X thought back to the silhouette he saw on the video. "A really big bird?"

Startled, the feline hero raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, how'd ya know?"

X put a finger to his chin. "I thought I saw a silhouette of something in Owl-boy's video. It looked like a bird, but I figured it was a trick of the light. We should keep our guard up. Do we want to split up? One of us handle the animals?"

Ladybug shook her head. "No; we need to take down the Akuma as fast as possible. The Miraculous cure will get those animals back to their rightful place."

X sighed in relief. He didn't want to be stuck on animal-duty. "Good. Do you have a plan?"

She opened her yoyo and pulled a USB cord out of the storage compartment, holding it up to X. "I do, but we need communication. Do you have any kind of comm system you could synch with ours?"

Reaching up to the red-and-black earpiece on the side of his head, X nodded. "Yeah." He twisted it, and it disconnected from the rest of his helmet. Accepting the cord, he plugged it in to the Universal Port on the side of the earpiece. Microscopic wires from his universal port fixed themselves to the important data-transmission bits in the cord from the yoyo. While his earpiece did its thing, he glanced over to where Owl had his definitely-not-a-trap set up. "So, what do you have in mind?"

Ladybug squared her shoulders and turned to face the two of them equally. "Cat Noir, you'll move in as a distraction. X, you take the high ground and provide cover fire when I move in. Don't reveal yourself until I give the signal. I'll try to sneak up on him and get the detonator."

X and Cat nodded as X unplugged his earpiece from her yoyo and reinserted it into his helmet. Without another word, they all leapt off to their respective tasks.

Just like the last time, climbing up the wall of the stadium was a cinch. Sticking to the shadows, he managed to get a fantastic vantage point overlooking the Akuma's setup. There was a big shipping container, but that was all X could see at the time. He zoomed his optics to get a better look as Cat Noir waltzed in and engaged the Akuma in banter.

Ladybug spoke over the comms as she snuck closer. "_Grappling iron, boomerang, utility belt. The Akuma must be in one of his weapons._"

Cat whispered his reply in order to not alert the Akuma (now identified as 'Dark Owl') of their conspiring. "_Yeah, but which one?_" He quickly re-engaged the Akuma with more banter. Honestly, X was impressed he could keep up with both conversations.

X pondered for a moment. "Well, I've done some research on Akumas. Their Akuma object is usually the item they use to activate their powers. We may just have to wait and see how his powers work."

Cat spotted an opening when Dark Owl held up the detonator to emphasize the stakes. "_There's an opening! Try and grab his detonator._"

"_On it._" In position, Ladybug flung out her yoyo and nailed the back of Dark Owl's hand, forcing the antihero to release the detonator. "_Over to you, Cat Noir! X, cover me!_" The punning feline deftly caught the little buttoned box, and X began raining buster shots down onto the Akuma's general area. Ladybug moved in for hand-to-hand while Cat Noir tried to figure out how to disarm the detonator. Dark Owl was quite the martial artist, but Ladybug was very formidable with her yoyo. He nearly got her with a few boomerangs, but X shot them out of the air as he slowly descended the stairs of the stadium. As Dark Owl began losing ground, a butterfly-shaped halo appeared in front of his face.

Hawk Moth's Lair

_You never said this would be three-on-one! I only prepared for Ladybug and Cat Noir!_

Hawk Moth stood in the center of his lair. Behind him, in the shadows, a bare-basics unfinished robotic skeleton hung supported by an assembly of standard robotic factory arms. Only one of the skeleton's arms was even a little bit functional; the rest of its limbs hadn't been started yet. Within reach was a laptop with lines upon lines of binary code gliding up and down the screen.

Hawk Moth frowned at the turn the fight was taking. "I thought it was implied. Sigma, do you have a Maverick ready? We need to separate X from this fight."

The eyes of the skeleton glowed as its one arm began typing on the keyboard. "I already sent one out. I will now command him to engage."

The moth-themed villain grinned. "Not to worry, Dark Owl; help is on the way."

The Stadium

The plan was working. Cat noir had disarmed the countdown and joined Ladybug against Dark Owl. Together, the three of them formed a flanking triangle around the Akuma. One-by-one they targeted his gadgets, and even the emblem on his chest, but each time there was a distinct lack of purple butterflies. After what felt like a whole minute of combat, Ladybug decided it was time to end it. "Allright guys, cover me! **Lucky Charm!**"

As X and Cat Noir fully engaged Dark Owl to cover their teammate, what looked to be a fountain pen dropped into Ladybug's waiting hands. "Huh, a fountain pen?"

Cat grinned as he blocked several blows from the Akuma. "What are you going to do? Ask him to sign you an autograph?" His distraction cost him, as Dark Owl managed to land a roundhouse in his gut. The detonator flew out of the hero's grasp, spinning as it tumbled through the air.

While Cat Noir was winded, Dark Owl swiped the detonator and reactivated it easily. "Ha!" With a deft hand, he tossed it precisely on top of the shipping container. "Hoo-Oops! Time flies! This is your last chance to save that helpless kitten!"

As Cat leapt after the detonator, X narrowed his eyes. Something wasn't right. Why would Dark Owl throw away his biggest source of leverage? Then it hit him, in tandem with one of Dark Owl's boomerangs. As the projectile sliced his helmet and the ENRG within him repaired it, he called after his companion. "Cat Noir, wait!"

It was too late. Dark Owl sent a net-boomerang after the indisposed hero, which Ladybug tried to intercept. However, it was then that the Akuma made his move. "Albert, activate the hatch!" Suddenly, a trapdoor opened and in fell the Miraculous heroes, who, without proper footing, were both snared by the net on their way down.

"Guys, don't worry, I'll get you out!" Worried for his friends, X dashed towards the container, but was intercepted by something completely unexpected. With a boom of thunder, a massive shape dropped from the clouds, and humongous metal talons pinned his arms to the ground. In the background, Dark Owl began advancing on the shipping container with the heroes inside, spouting something about holograms and whipped cream. X struggled for a moment before looking up at his aggressor and gasped as he saw who- or rather _what_\- it was.

"SO WE FINALLY MEET, X. SORRY TO SAY, I'M A BIT DISSAPOINTED." It was a Maverick; there was no mistaking it. It was modeled after a large bird with a long slender beak, with a navy blue and electric yellow color scheme. Its massive chassis was eight times the size of X, and its wingspan was easily at least thirty-five feet; its weight was so heavy that he had to use a slight amount of ENRG to keep his arms in a usable shape. Thrusters lined its underside, likely for it to be able to leave the ground at all. The mechanical beast craned its neck around to peer at X with one of its huge optics. The reploid engineering was incredibly distinct, but the violence in its optic betrayed its deviant nature.

X wasn't sure which emotion was more apparent on his face; shock, disbelief, anger, or dare he say it fear. There was no way another Maverick could have come to this world from his; Warp Wasp was one of a kind, and he had been thoroughly under the control of Robostus the entire time he was here. This guy couldn't have been from his world; he was constructed here.

The Maverick virus had found a host. Somehow, from the time Warp Wasp had come here and the moment he had been destroyed, the maverick virus had spread. But to what? And how did it find the resources to build a Maverick so quickly?

Those were questions for later. For now, he had a threat to deal with. X glared up into the massive optic the size of his head and tried to pull one of his arms out from underneath a talon to no avail. "Stand DOWN! Leave this world ALONE or there WILL BE CONSEQUENCES!"

The Maverick grinned with its massive beak and tightened its grip. "I THINK NOT. I, AMPERE ALBATROSS, WAS CREATED SPECIFICALLY TO DESTROY YOU. I WILL ENJOY RIPPING YOU APART PIECE BY PIECE. I THINK I'LL LEAVE YOUR HEAD INTACT AND FORCE YOU TO WATCH AS I DESTROY THE CITY!"

X glared defiantly at the Maverick as he accessed his weapon database. "I think not! **Warp Stinger!**"

With a flash of light, the change was instantaneous. Prevoiusly various shades of blue, he was now yellow with black highlights. Under Ampere Albatross's talon, his buster had stinger-like prongs. When he fired, the space by the Maverick's head seemed to twist, forming a portal. Several stingers launched out of the warp with a whistling sound, striking the Maverick hard.

X began pulling himself out of the ground as Ampere Albatross stumbled back, clutching his face with feather-like fingers as its own ENRG performed instant repairs. X leapt to his feet and brushed himself off, reading for combat. He hadn't had to fully engage his combat protocols yet; he had just been using some trajectory-calculating software to avoid seriously injuring the human they were fighting. Now, however, things had become dire. No more holding back.

Ampere Albatross roared at him before firing up its thrusters. With a few flaps of its great wings, it took to the sky and began circling X. Not wasting a moment, X began circling the stadium himself, jumping up and using the bleachers as higher ground.

He soon found that Ampere Albatross wasn't named 'Ampere' for nothing. As it passed over X, it opened its beak and released a massive bolt of lighting. Not expecting that, X took the full force of the attack and got slammed into the stairway, creating a crater. X reasoned that the lightning must have been loaded with plasma in order to have that kind of punch. As the ENRG flowed through him and repaired his essential systems, he spared a glance towards Dark Owl and the shipping container. His first thought was to go and help his allies, but he remembered that all of Paris was in danger from the Maverick he was currently fighting and decided to give it his undivided attention.

X pulled himself up shakily, his software acting a little glitchy after that lightning strike. The hit had drained him of nearly all his remaining ENRG, so he activated his second Sub Tank, leaving him with another two. He needed to end this fast; he didn't have enough sub-tanks to survive many more of those lightning strikes.

X readied his buster, watching Ampere Albatross circle around him. The Warp Stinger was likely one of his strongest weapons yet; he could instantaneously open portals between the business end of his gun and anywhere within a one-hundred-foot area. By firing stingers through that portal, he could shoot in any direction from any direction. It was very convenient that he had _this_ weapon in _this_ fight; without it, he would still be pinned under Ampere Albatross possibly getting his components ripped out.

Speaking of the devil, said Maverick was getting ready to make another pass. X picked a coordinate to fire from and let loose a barrage of stingers, while also trying to dodge the incoming lightning. The streak of energy just barely nicked him, still dealing considerable damage. However, the Warp Stinger hit its target dead-on. X thanked his lucky stars that the Albatross's hull seemed to be extra susceptible to piercing.

Now that he had identified a pattern to the Maverick's behavior and figured out a counter, it was just a matter of rinse-and-repeat.

[Somewhat Earlier, in the Shipping Container]

Dark Owl cackled at the reveal of the kitten falsehood. "_You knaves, it was a hologram all along! So how does it feel to lose for once and be humiliated? Did you really think I would hurt a kitten? This next trap, though, is very real. The room you're in is filling up with whipped cream as we speak! Whipped cream's too thick to swim, but too runny to float on!_"

Cat Noir smirked at the predicament, hiding his slight nervousness as he pulled against the net. "I hope it's lactose-free, at least."

Dark Owl continued. "_And don't count on that meddlesome Blue Bomber; he is currently indisposed with a mechanical friend of mine. You're going to drown! Softly, but surely unless that is you accept defeat and give me your Miraculous!_" A small mail-slot-like compartment slid open, just perfectly large enough for a pair of Miraculous.

Ladybug glanced around, trying to formulate a plan. She spotted Cat Noir's ring, the net, the pen, and the only camera in the room. "Cat Noir, Cataclysm the net!"

"Will do, Milady. **Cataclysm!**" As the net disintegrated, Ladybug advanced towards the camera and uncapped the pen. As she blotted out the lens with the ink inside, Dark Owl scoffed.

"_Do you really think it'll make a difference if I can't see you, Ladybug? There is no escape! That net insured that your Cataclysm is wasted, and nothing else you possess can break you out! If you don't give me the Miraculous now, I'll simply take them after the Owl Cream has buried you!_"

Cat Noir punched the door on the side in despair. "He's right, we're done for!"

Ladybug shook her head and whispered, "Not yet, we're not." She turned back towards the camera, which probably also had a microphone. "You win, Dark Owl!" She faced her partner with a very serious expression. "Close your eyes, and no peeking."

Cat Noir was stunned as he realized what she had said. "We can't do this. We don't need to; X will stop him. X, you there?"

Over the comm, X was panting hard. "_Can't, a little busy right now. Giant lightning bird trying to kill me._"

Ladybug sighed and placed a hand on Cat Noir's shoulder. "Trust me, ok?"

Cat Noir nodded and closed his eyes, with Ladybug following suit. Together, they called off their transformations. The distinctly un-gloved hand of Marinette Dupain-Cheng placed a pair of red earrings and a black ring into the waiting tray while Adrien Agreste faithfully kept his eyes closed.

[Outside]

X had been given a run for his money. Ampere Albatross's ENRG was getting low, but X was dangerously close to needing another Sub Tank. It certainly wasn't helping that Dark Owl seemed to have acquired the Miraculous and sent them off in a drone. X's 'heart' sank as he realized his friends had been defeated, but he re-steeled himself as he was currently in a life-or-death situation. Albatross had just finished a pass, and now X was readying himself for another.

[Hawk Moth's Lair]

"They are mine! Ladybug's ability to create and Cat Noir's power of destruction! Whoever succeeds in merging these two Miraculouses together shall be granted a wish that can change reality! And erase the past!" He tore open the box like a child on Christmas and dumped the Miraculous into his waiting hand. However, something immediately caught his eye: small imperfections, a few spots of flaking paint, and a lack of the glow from the black cat's green paw. They were extremely well-made, but…

"This cannot be! NOOOOOO! Dark Owl, Ladybug and Cat Noir tricked you! These are fake Miraculous!" He tossed them to the floor and ground them to dust with his boot.

Nearby, Sigma cackled. "A wish. Is that why you want them? How very… _human_ of you. Ladybug and Cat Noir may have bested your Akuma, but the game is not over yet. Let us see how Ampere Albatross fares against X. If my creation should succeed, he will then target the other heroes."

[The Stadium]

X cursed to himself; he had missed a few too many shots, and now was dangerously low on ammunition for his Warp Stinger. To make things worse, the X-Buster's plasma blasts weren't accurate enough at long range to hit even a large target like Ampere Albatross. He would have to find a way to get close.

Meanwhile, Cat Noir had Cataclysmed the roof of the container. The two miraculous heroes were back to fighting Dark Owl. X spared a grin; their ruse had even duped him. "Hey, you guys doing allright?"

Ladybug was the one to answer. "_Yeah, we'll finish off Dark Owl and see if we can come help you!_"

X shook his head as he tried to get higher ground. "No, I don't want you guys on this thing's radar. You take your bad guy, I'll take mine. Divide and conquer, right?"

On the other line, Ladybug sighed. "_Allright. Just let us know if we can help you._"

X glanced over and caught a glimpse of Cat's baton extending. "Well, now that you mention it, I need to get in close to this thing. Cat Noir, think you can spare me a _Cat_-apult?"

X could hear Cat's smile through the comms, as well as Ladybug's groan. "_Only if you're feline up to it!_"

After dodging a bolt of lightning, X leapt down to where the other heroes were fighting. Cat Noir extended his baton about twenty feet to where X was; after X had crouched down and stepped on his end, Cat Noir swung with all his might in the direction of Ampere Albatross. At the apex of the arc, X kicked off the pole and sailed through the air. He intercepted the maverick with a metallic clang, grabbing hold of one of its armor plates. Immediately switching his other arm from the Warp Stinger to the X-Buster and his blue colors, he started pelting its hull with fully charged blasts.

"GET OFF ME, WHELP!" Ampere Albatross began climbing further upward into the air, twisting and writhing to angle hits beak's lightning strike at him, but to no avail. High above Paris, the city lights below them were splayed out like a starry sky; if it wasn't for his combat protocols, X would be too awe-struck to continue fighting.

The energy readings he was receiving from Ampere Albatross told him he was almost there. Just a few more shots and the Maverick was done. As X let loose the final blow, Ampere Albatross released a roar of fury as its power core ruptured, destabilized by the sudden lack of ENRG. A violent explosion rocked the skies of Paris that night.

The trace amounts of ENRG remaining from Ampere Albatross flowed through the crystal on X's forehead, giving him the Maverick's complete blueprints. Then, as X began to plummet alongside the bits of debris, he realized he hadn't thought far enough ahead. The ground was coming fast, and he was dangerously low on ENRG. In their flight, they had strayed away from the stadium. A little too far to do X's buster-recoil-trick to get there, so he did a quick scan for other landing zones. He locked on to the River Seine and recoil-angled himself that way instead.

With a boom, he impacted the surface of the water. The flowing liquid managed to cushion his fall quite well with minimum damage to his hull, and he smoothly sank to the bottom. He only had a single unit of ENRG left, so he activated his second-to-last sub tank; it was good to be prepared for any eventuality. He climbed out and tried to contact Ladybug and Cat Noir. "I've beat my baddie. How are you guys holding up?"

Cat Noir Answered. "_The Akuma's object is offsite, which is actually pretty clever. Ladybug is going after it, and Dark Owl is chasing after her. He has a _Jetpack_ for crying out loud! I'm trying to keep him busy._"

Ladybug spoke up, sounding a bit winded. "_X, do you know Collège Françoise Dupont?_"

X nodded, consulting what he remembered of the city's layout. "It's the number one site of Akuma attacks, right?"

"_That's right. Meet me there!_"

"On my way." X had seen maps of Paris from time to time, and a literal photographic memory was just one of the perks of being a robot. He quickly charted the fastest way to get to the school and began dash-jumping from building to building. As soon as he arrived, he saw Dark Owl swooping in towards a window on one side. X hurried there as fast as he could but was nearly too late. By the time he got there, Dark Owl had taken out one of Ladybug's earrings. X crouched in the windowsill indecisively as he surveyed the scene.

A high-tech computer with a facial display sat on a desk with wires stretching out all over the room. Dark Owl was about to go for the other earring. Ladybug's suit was halfway dissolved, and X's facial recognition was bugging out worse than it ever had before; it kept switching between telling him that she's Ladybug and identifying her as a stranger. He himself knew logically that she was Ladybug, but his software couldn't decide. He called out to her to let her know he had arrived. "Ladybug!"

She seemed panicked, which made sense as she was about to lose for the first time in… well, ever. "Shoot the computer!"

X immediately formed his buster and complied, the resulting low power plasma-shot obliterating the device before Dark Owl could react. The little purple butterfly emerged from its smoking remains as Dark Owl began losing his Akumatization. Ladybug snatched her earring and reinserted it, restoring her transformation so she could begin the process of purifying the Akuma.

Just then, Cat Noir joined X on the windowsill. "Did I miss anything?"

X chuckled as he stepped fully into the room. "Only the action. Nice job stalling him, though; if he had gotten here any sooner, he would have nabbed the other earring before I arrived."

Cat grinned at the praise before fully realizing what had been said, his face twisting into shocked horror. "Wait, he _got an earring_!?"

Ladybug finished her "_**Miraculous Ladybug!**_" and approached the two boys as Mr. Damocles regained his senses. "Yeah, but we got it back. I'm not too thrilled either; we'll have to up our game. There were too many close calls tonight for my taste. Pound it?"

They all went in for the traditional fist bump and spoke in unison. "Pound it."

Mr. Damocles, still in his owl costume, looked confused about why the three superheroes were in his office before the realization dawned on him. "Oh no, was I Akumatized? I'm terribly sorry for any inconvenience I might have caused. Perhaps if I had been there to help…"

Ladybug and Cat Noir shared a look before the latter moved in for his natural role as a victim-consoler. "It's nothing we can't handle. Ladybug, X, and I have got the heroics covered. You don't have to lift a finger."

The principal looked slightly downcast as he nodded and listened but perked up as Cat Noir continued. "Although, maybe you could be a hero in your own way."

Ladybug seemed to understand where he was going and added her two cents. "Paris is always in need of more volunteers for community service."

X joined in as well. "And simply doing good deeds is a heroic act in its own right."

Damocles pondered for a moment before standing up and smiling at the trio. "Yes, I think you're right! Perhaps I've been going about this the wrong way." He struck a heroic pose. "I, the Owl, shall continue in my heroics, spreading goodwill and ensuring that justice is served on a smaller scale! Hoo hoo!"

Cat Noir and Ladybug beamed as they started towards the window. Ladybug readied her yoyo as Cat addressed the Owl one last time. "That's what I'm talking about! _Cat_ch ya later!"

As they leapt out the window, Ladybug called her signature "Bug out!"

As the other two swung and vaulted away, X stood there awkwardly for a moment. "Well, uh, I'm not on a timer. I'll just go out the front door, if that's alright."

The principal seemed bewildered at X's 'normal' approach to a superhero exit and simply nodded. "Go ahead, it'll lock behind you on its own."

X backpedaled to the door to leave the office. "Thanks. I don't have a clever exit phrase, so goodbye, I guess."

Damocles watched him leave before shaking out of his stupor. Looking down at himself, he realized he was still wearing his Owl costume. "I should probably get out of this thing."

[Hawk Moth's Lair]

Hawk Moth was clutching his cane tightly; his knuckles would have been white if they weren't gloved. "We were so close…" He rounded on the unfinished form of Sigma, his fists shaking slightly and his eyes. "What exactly happened out there!? X managed to defeat your robot, that cost a _fortune_ might I add, with _EASE_!"

Sigma's eyes glinted; if he had more of a face than a half-finished metal skull, he would have smiled. "Now now, dear Hawk Moth, you'd best calm down. We wouldn't want you to get akumatized, now would we?"

Hawk Moth scowled, and Nathalie barely managed to keep her straight face. A light "Pfft" escaped her lips, and Hawk Moth looked at her in shocked surprise. "You think that's funny?"

Nathalie straightened up best she could and assumed her usual expressionless demeanor. "Not at all, sir." Which was a lie.

Sigma began typing into his keyboard again, which activated a set of assembly-robots which resumed their work on his newest body. "That was but one of eight, and it did its job, did it not? It kept X away from the fight, and Dark Owl nearly succeeded. Imagine eight Mavericks at once, and you will have a threat to which X will surely perish. As for your financial concern, the Miraculous Cure perfectly repaired the late Ampere Albatross. You will find him dormant in his capsule in your basement. I took the liberty of teleporting him directly there."

Hawk Moth calmed down at that, releasing his transformation with a "_**Nooroo, Dark Wings Fall.**_" He and Nathalie stepped onto the elevator as the latter typed a command into her tablet. "Very well. Continue with the construction of your 'Mavericks'. I will let you know if I need them." He paused before going down, a look of mild curiosity on his face. "Whatever happened to that little… _vessel_ of yours?"

Sigma tilted his head slightly; a motion that carried some unclear emotion due to the current lack of facial expression. "That machine's processor was… uncomfortable to exist within. It was different enough from the standard Reploid hardware and operating system that I needed out in order to function properly. As soon as I built a processor to my specifications, I released it back to its previous existence; it now serves as a secret contingency should this body ever fail."

Satisfied, Gabriel nodded to Nathalie to lower the elevator. As soon as they emerged in his office, he collapsed onto his desk chair. "Nathalie, do you think it wise to trust Sigma?"

Nathalie looked conflicted before answering. "I don't think we have a choice. I suspect that X could defeat most Akumas singlehandedly. Without Sigma's help, X's presence would make our goal unattainable."

Nooroo piped up from the salted caramel he was eating to recharge. "I sense… _strange_ emotions from him. It feels like… like a flicker. It's sometimes rage, sometimes amusement, but most of the time it's just _nothing_. It's quite unsettling how hard to read he is."

Gabriel regarded the Kwami curiously. Nooroo had never willingly helped him, so it was a mystery to him as to why he had suddenly contributed actively. "I sensed nothing like that."

The small creature sighed after popping another treat into his mouth. "As the bearer of the Butterfly Miraculous, you have empathic abilities. I, being the source of your power, have a far stronger attunement to the emotions of others."

Gabriel 'Hmm'ed, gesturing for Nathalie to leave for the time being and for Nooroo to make himself scarce. He had a lot to think about, and a master plan to create. Fashion week was still some ways off, but he had quite the plan for a certain yellow-clad critic. If he played his cards right, she would be _explosive_.

[Le Grand Paris]

X sat on his room's bed, his processor moving a mile a minute. It was worrying that the virus had created a Maverick so quickly, but it was far more worrying that it had found a host. He didn't want to think about what that meant for this world; their level of tech was primitive compared to his own and wouldn't survive the resulting destruction of a Maverick uprising.

Deciding he was too restless for stasis (his version of sleep), he decided to roam the Hotel. He left his room and quietly shut the door behind him, beginning a slow wander. This really was a very nice hotel; X was surprised that the owner would reserve a room just for him, though he supposed it was just the man's way of thanking him.

As he walked, he thought long and hard about the fight between him and Warp Wasp. What had the maverick come into contact with that had a powerful enough processor to house the virus? There were tons of cars during that fight, but none of them would have had the capacity to hold the virus. Ladybug and Cat Noir were not Reploids, so it couldn't have been them. He didn't know a lot about that little propeller-ball-thing, so he didn't rule it out. And it was that green-shirt kid that was Akumatized, right? The whole event went by so quickly that X couldn't determine any possible answer.

In his roaming musings, he happened upon a lounge-area with a Piano. X sighed as he ran his hand across its wooden surface. It had been ages since he had picked up a musical instrument; he hadn't so much as touched one since the first Maverick Uprising. Running the Maverick Hunters with Zero took up all the time he had. Deciding that he needed a distraction and that now was as good a time as ever, he pulled out the bench and opened up the key-cover-thing. He searched his database for something to play and settled on one of his favorites.

The song had a contemplative tone, containing an inner warmth of some uplifting emotion. X didn't know the meaning behind it, or why its composer had written it, but he regarded it as one of the greatest pieces of all time.

When he finished, a voice sounded behind him. "That's quite the song, mate." Startled, he jerked around to see none other than Jagged Stone with a guitar case on his back.

X was slightly embarrassed, and rubbed the back of his neck as he stood from the Piano. "Oh, uh, thanks? It's called 'Prototype's Requiem'."

Jagged sat down on one of the couches and leaned back. "I don't think I've heard anything quite like it. Did you write it?"

X sat back down on the Piano bench. "No; it was written by one of my predecessors."

The Rockstar began taking his guitar out of the case and tuning it. "It's kind of bluesy; I like it. Even if it isn't rock-and-roll, it's still Rock-and-Roll, if you know what I mean."

X was puzzled for a moment before deciding to let it be. "Uh, sure? Say, what are you doing wandering around this late at night?"

Strumming a few chords, Jagged hummed a bit. "I could ask you the same thing. As for me, well, I had a fantastic idea for a song, and I wanted to get it down before I forgot it. Fang was asleep, so I decided to find somewhere else to play. You know how crocodiles need their beauty rest. Did you know that this room is soundproofed? That was because of me. I come here a lot."

The robot 'ah'ed his understanding. "I had a lot on my mind, so I started to wander. I found this room by accident."

Jagged smiled at that. X was surprised to find that the Rockstar was a lot less energetic than before; perhaps it was just the nighttime atmosphere. As Jagged stone started experimenting with melodies, he looked over to X curiously. "I didn't peg you as the musician type."

X sighed as he leaned back onto the Piano. "I used to be, when I had time for it. I wrote music; my nickname was Rockman X, can you believe that?" He sighed sadly. "Now I'm just Mega Man X, the Maverick Hunter. Killer of defective robots. Sad, right?"

Jagged nodded sagely. He tried something on the guitar, but the notes clashed and he scowled. He tried a few more times, but nothing sounded the way it was supposed to. "I just can't seem to get that part right."

X turned back around to the piano. "How's this?" He played the bit that Jagged had down, and then hit the last bit. Much to both of their surprise, it sounded pretty good. Eyes wide, Jagged responded with a riff of his own, which X accompanied with some improvised background piano. (Think 'Armored Armodillo')

The rockstar clapped his hands excitedly. "Crikey, I think we've got something there!" He sat forward and looked X in the eye. "I think we should do an album together."

Widening his optics in surprise, X shook his head. "No, I couldn't, I'm no rock star, I-"

Jagged interrupted him, too stoked to take no for an answer. "Just think how Rock-and-Roll it would be! Rock Star Jagged Stone and Superhero Rockman X, with their new hit album: Album name! It's a working title, but we'll figure something out! We can get Marinette to design the cover and costumes and debut the whole thing at the music festival!"

X sighed with a smile. It seemed there was no getting out of it at this point; but then again, did he want to get out of it? As he thought, he realized that no, he didn't want to escape it. He needed something like this; something to help him maintain a feeling of fulfillment. His primary focus would still be the Warp Gate, but that didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun on the side. "Allright, let's do it."

Ecstatic, Jagged Stone shouted out a "So Rock and Roll! I've got to tell Penny!" and rushed off to tell Penny, forgetting that it was well after midnight.

[Elsewhere]

The Agreste and his offspring were asleep, and the staff had retired. Sigma had the house to himself. When he punched a few commands into his laptop, the assembly arms ceased what they were doing and bent around, becoming spider-like legs. Sigma moved the assembly-station he was suspended on over to the elevator and activated it. He sent it to the one place the Agreste had attempted to deny him access; the chamber underneath the house. As the elevator came to a stop, he typed in the command to begin moving his assembly-station forward down a metal walkway.

The setup that the Agreste had here was interesting to say the least. The lighting and the greenery and even the way the room was structured drew all attention to a capsule on the other side of the room. Sigma advanced on it, before reaching forward to press the button to open it. His eyes glinted dangerously as his grinning skull grinned wider. "_This_ is his ultimate goal? What an… interesting development."

Having gotten what he came for, he closed the capsule and went back through the elevator. This time, he directed it to the hidden warehouse where the Agreste stored his 'less than honorable' purchases. It was here that Sigma was building his personal army. Various crates piled against the walls, and in the center of the room, numerous capsules of varying size formed a circle. He looked over the Mavericks in various stages of completion and chuckled. "Soon, my friends; soon. This defenseless world will be ours."

**A/N:**

**And done! I'm really proud of this thing, it's practically writing itself at this point. I was looking forward to writing Dark Owl, it was one of my favorite episodes.**

**As for that bit with Jagged, I wanted X to have something to do during the music festival, so I decided to hit a bunch of birds with one Jagged Stone. I have a great plan for this little side-plot.**

**As of now, I've decided not to ship X with anyone. I've had multiple ideas, but none of them really stick or flow with my jive, ya know?.**

**I plan to release a chapter at least once a month, with about maybe twelve chapters total. Ben 10,000 used to release weekly, but each chapter was only about 3,000 words if I remember right. These chapters are closer to 10,000 words each, and thus take much longer to complete. I'll also try to have as much of a buffer as possible.**

**Thank you for reading! Reviews are appreciated, and I'll see you in the next one!**


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